Maritime Cargo Vessels – is bigger better?

In this article, “Maritime Cargo Vessels – is bigger better” one of the world’s largest cargo ships, the “MSC Oscar,” is described and compared with other ships dating back to 1956. The article describes how the constant increase in the size of ships being constructed continuous to decrease the cost of each container being transported.

The MSC Oscar was launched in 2014. It is 400 meters long and can carry 19.224 industry standard sized containers. In 24 hours it can travel 1000 kilometers consuming 280.000 liters of fuel, which is equivalent to 1,5 liter of fuel pr. container travelled 100 kilometers. In comparison, an average car carrying less than the load of one container, consumes on average 9 liters pr. 100 kilometers travelled. Transport by containership is thereby much more economical and environmentally friendly compared to other means of road transport.

Since 1956, the capacity of the world’s largest container ship has increased by almost 20.000%.